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Tuesday, August 26, 2008

I found myself today in yet another discussion about the merits of traditional media vs. new media. I wish these terms would evaporate because we’re still trapped in a 1999 marketing dictionary.

Here’s what I try to remember to keep myself sane in these conversations:

If you want to make a 20 year old laugh, refer to the web as new media. Ditto for mobile.

Debating the merits of new media vs. traditional media is as useful as debating television vs. print. It’s all media. What matters is knowing how, when and why you use each.

Digital must be planned as part of the main course, not the side dish. Continuing the food metaphor, Burger King’s Whopper Freak-out made for a good commercial, but the true depth of the idea was found online. One couldn't exist without the other.There is no such thing as traditional media, only traditional uses of media. Is BDM’s mobile text campaign for Applied Materials “traditional” because it appears on a billboard? Of course not. Conversely, should a not-too-distinctive rich media ad be considered “new” because it appears online? (You get the point.)

Digital has as much branding power as television and print. Television will become a pure digital medium in early 2009, offering the targeting and accountability we demand of online marketing. Which is traditional? Which is the branding medium?

Mobile has the power to immediately transform every billboard, television commercial and print ad into opt-in interactive media. Just add a text call to action instead of a URL.

I believe we learned the basics of integrated marketing at age five when we got our first giant box of Crayola 64 crayons. Before getting this box we drew fairly mundane pictures using traditional colors like blue, red and brown. Then, with 64 crayons suddenly at our disposal, we used every color imaginable (because we could) and made really confusing drawings.

In time, we learned how and when to blend a little green and brown with a touch of wild strawberry and neon carrot. We didn’t debate which one was the traditional color, we just knew they blended together to make for a beautiful drawing.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Folks attending the Democratic National Convention in Denver will be greeted by somebody with an important message: the sun.

BD'M collaborated with Applied Materials to create a campaign to reinforce the potential of solar energy, a solution that is increasingly within our reach.

Applied Materials has long been a global leader in the semiconductor business and is now applying its nanomanufacturing technologies to green-tech solutions such as solar, energy efficient glass and lighting.

The DNC campaign consists of newspaper, outdoor, and a cool mobile initiative. Text SUN to 42107...the sun has something to say.

The best “response” to date is the way Ford is launching its new Flex – a truly segment-busting car (minivan? cross-over?). With the Flex, Ford is bringing to bear many of the strategies outlined in the article. (PS: I harbor no illusion that my opinions had any influence. Having worked extensively in the car business, I know Ford’s strategies were likely in place 18 months ago.)

First and foremost, Ford showed courage in green-lighting a love it or hate it design. The all too common decision is to choose safe designs that are mildly appealing to as many customers as possible (with the notable exception of the Chrysler 300). Ford chose instead to turn heads and be passionately appealing to a select group of customers.

And speaking of design, Ford enlisted a fashion designer, Anthony Prozzi, to imbue the car’s interior with non-automotive design cues.

Ford is generating buzz and demand by orchestrating a slow roll-out in major markets such as Atlanta, Miami, New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles before broadening to a full national launch. This is so much smarter than the tendency to flood dealer lots with too many cars which then require buzz-killing incentives to bring down the inventory. (I can sense the fingerprints of my former Toyota client, Jim Farley, who is now CMO for Ford Motor. The man knows a thing or two about marketing.)

Great product. Smart marketing. Let’s hope it can overcome the bad timing of launching in the current economy.

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Insightful article by a former colleague. Erik applies the razor v. razor blade economic model to the music business. He make a good point. My partner Stuart D'Rozario is currently recording his second CD. He may beg to differ.